John Lee wrote:

> So is promiscuity illegal?  Dangerous?  Profane?  Pornographic?  Why
> is it not protected under the constitution?  What is unique about it
> that it's not protected as freedom of speech?
>
Promiscuity may still be illegal in certain states.  I'm not sure.
Whether or not it is dangerous is an entirely new OT discussion (e.g.
teenage girls getting pregnant, or HIV, etc)  Profanity and pornogrpahy
are situationally ethical issues, at best.  Regardless....

The protection of civil liberties in public forums is the crux of your
concern, but for some time (and private schools are much more "guilty"
of this than public) the norm has been to balance the supression of
rights with the perceived benefits derived therefrom.  An example might
be a perochial school that bans the wearing of symbols promoting
satanism or forms of the occult.  Another might be a school
administrator who bans a tshirt picturing the twin towers in flames with
a caption commending the terrorists on their ability to acheive their goals.

Are these suppressions of the first ammendment rights of the students?
Yes.  Are they supressions that are readily accepted by the parents or
at least the majority of the parents?  Usually.  I don't really think
"but everyone is doing it" is a good argument, in general; but in this
case, the fact that the "normal" behavior is to curtail the rights of
some in favor of keeping the peace, or in support of an ideal, is just
that: normal.

Anywho...the Principal used his judgement and made a policy statement.
Your daughter understood the rules, and broke them.  His sending her
home was correct.  You should discuss with your daughter the fact that
she does not have to agree with the authority figure and commend her for
nonviolently acting in protest, but also be clear on this.  The
authority figure in question, whose responsibility goes beyond
interacting with one student, made a rule; and she needs to follow the
rules or work within the system to change them.

I may not agree with what the Principal does, but neither am I walking a
mile in his shoes.

Rs~

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